


Payback

by LivMore



Category: Glee, The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Gen, Multi, Sebastian Smythe is Barry Allen | The Flash, Slushies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-11
Updated: 2015-08-17
Packaged: 2018-04-14 05:18:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4552107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LivMore/pseuds/LivMore
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Barry Allen has unfortunate encounters with some people from his past looking for payback. Hence the slushies.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Barry shuffled his feet next to Iris. Two hours into her yearly “Spring Closet Cleaning” and his feet were killing. He enjoyed spending time with Iris—he really did, but he had a late night at S.T.A.R. Labs. Barry put up with it, though, because he hadn’t been able to hang out with her like they used to before Eddie pushed his way into their duo. He felt a little guilty thinking that because he had no right to say Eddie was even intruding on anything.

Lost in his thoughts, Barry looked up to see Iris waving at him a couple paces ahead. He jogged a bit to catch up before he saw where she was leading him. Barry followed Iris into the candle store happily. They’d always had this rule that the candle store was the last stop before they paid a visit to the greasy food in the mall cafeteria. No matter how many times they promised to only smell the weird leafy scents, they always ended up here: digging into the backs of the shelves to find the candles that smelt like cookie dough and apple pie. Barry and Iris inhaled deeply as if trying to hold in the last of the scent before they walked to the food court.

Iris glanced at him before fixating on the walls of food. The court was entirely enclosed by different fast food restaurants (and that one overpriced coffee shop that never seemed to go out of business).

Barry thought she might start drooling all over her new clothes, so he interrupted her thoughts. “What should we go for today?” He pulled out his wallet and carded through his bills. “I think I’ve even got enough for two at the Italian To-Go-Pizza,” Barry said thoughtfully.

“You know I never let you pay anyway.” Iris rolled her eyes. Childishly, Barry only stuck out his tongue in response. She took a second look-around and landed her eyes on the Chinese take-out. She raised her eyebrows in question towards Barry, knowing he saw her practically whimper at the sight of Chinese food.

“Seriously?” He asked exasperatedly. “I’m pretty sure you brought me this food last week when I called in sick.” She tried to purse her lips in an attempts to contain herself, but the snort that left her nose broke the facade.

“Fine, you caught me,” Iris laughed. “But it’s still good, so I’m choosing there!”

 

* * *

 

Barry wasn’t sure how it happened, but all of a sudden Iris was hissing vehement words at him. He thought it could have started when the cashier mentioned the robbery that he—the Flash, that is—was present for. Of course it could have started when she started talking about her blog again. It shouldn’t have been an issue, but Barry wanted to spend their day together talking about normal things. Like...the weather! He heard that was a good conversation to have. But no, Barry had somehow turned into the sounding board for her crazier-than-usual Streak theories. 

He was doing good so far. He even had a system. If her eyes were glinting madly, Barry leaned back, forced his face to be pensive, and nodded slowly as if her logic made complete sense. Of course, if she got too close to being correct about anything he would laugh and suggest something farther off from the mark.

Then he heard it. There was some mumbling behind him several feet, but he swore he had heard someone say “Sebastian.”

Iris started talking again, but he hushed her immediately. “Excuse me?” Iris growled. Barry flinched, but he attempted to hone his hearing into whoever was behind him again. She didn’t pay him any attention and continued, “Barry Allen. Don’t you dare tell me that we are going to fight about the Streak again. Am I boring you so much that you can’t even stand to hear me talk?” Iris’ voice shook with anger.

“Just be quiet for a minute,” Barry muttered dismissively.

This time he was positive that someone said his old nickname. He turned to look for the culprit, and he got a cold wash of sticky liquid down his face. He could feel ice chunks sliding down his shirt, and his hair was dripping onto his hands.

He wiped two huge globs of stickiness off his eyes clearing his vision. Looking at his hands, he saw red. Literally. Great, Barry thought. Huge red stains will be so much fun to get out.

Barry looked up to try to find the idiot that tripped into him.

Instead his eyes caught sight of a familiar Latina.

She smirked. “Hey, Twink.”


	2. Chapter 2

“Oh my God, Barry! Here, have my napkins. We’ll have to go home now. You can’t walk around looking like that. Aren’t you at least going to apologize? Accidents happen, but…” Iris trailed off when she saw that Barry was still staring wide-eyed at the girl. He tried to subtly look for an escape plan but couldn’t imagine leaving Iris at the hands of the Latina. “Barry, are you okay?” Iris broke his train of thought.

“Wha—oh, yeah. Fine,” he stuttered. “We should go, right? We’ve been shopping for hours, and you definitely have enough clothes. I’ve got to change anyway,” he rambled with a fake smile plastered on his face. He stood up and attempted to slide past the girl while avoiding her eyes.

“I don’t think so. Santana Lopez. Barry, is it?” The girl grabbed the front of his jacket, stopping Barry from leaving.

“Barry. Allen,” he said, praying that she would go along with it.

She smirked. Santana had him cornered, and she knew it. “Don’t you remember me, Barry? I didn’t spend all that time picking fights with you—plus waste an overpriced slushie—if I thought you would forget me at the first opportunity you got, Barry.” It was a subtle and effective nod to his morally questionable past. Santana smirked in regard to Barry’s discomfort. His clammy hands clenched involuntarily, creating crescent moon dents in his palm.

Iris pointed between the two people that were having a deathly stare-off. Abandoned from the conversation, she asked, “Wait...you know her?” Barry and Santana paid her no mind.

“You must have me confused with someone else,” he tried to dismiss nonchalantly. He grabbed Iris’s hand from the now sticky mess of red napkins on the table, and he went to ease out of Santana’s grasp. Barry took one squeaky step, his Converses sliding against the ceramic tile floor; however, he could clearly hear the mirth in her voice after he turned himself and Iris towards the exit.

“So you’re into ladies now?” Barry froze mid-step, and Santana continued relentlessly. “Last I remember, you were definitely quee—”

“Stop!” He whipped around to face Santana, and Iris gaped at his change in demeanor. Barry huffed in annoyance. “Fine, I admit it! How could I hope to forget a personality like that?” He relaxed into the role that Santana clearly recognized. “It’s lovely to see your gorgeous face again, Lima Heights. I should also admit that I’m surprised to see you here and not plastered all over the news for a federal offense. How would you have it? Premeditated murder? Public indecency?” He chuckled before adding, “Arson of McKinley High?”

If Santana glanced at Iris, it went unnoticed by Barry. Iris, on the other hand, vied for his attention by tugging on their intertwined hands. Her mouth hung open, and her eyebrows pulled together as she studied the alias in front of her. This one was the complete opposite of her laughably nerdy brother. Sure, Barry was prone to quick-witted sarcasm, but never before had he blatantly meant to cripple someone with it. He certainly wasn’t pulling any punches…

“Is your self-esteem is so low that you need me to tell you that I remember you? So that you feel better? Then, yes, I remember you, Sha-Queer-A.” Barry eyed her condescendingly. “Now could you, please, stop bothering me and my sister?”

“Barry!” Iris yelled at him. He, having forgotten that she was beside him, jumped at the shriek in his ear. Iris yanked her hand out of his tight grasp and crossed her arms, taking a step away.

Santana, who was shockingly unphased by the taunts, smirked in triumph at Barry. “Sister, huh? For a second there I almost thought you grew some balls and got yourself a girlfriend,” she laughed. “Wouldn’t that be a change of pace?”

Barry ducked his head in a vain attempt to hide the growing heat in his face. No one can hide a weakness from Santana, though, and she said, “Oh! Ew, your own si—”

“Shut up,” Barry muttered. “We’re leaving.”

“Do you have to go so soon?” Santana sneered. “Before I forget, make sure you wash that prep school cardigan really well. I added a little something special from Auntie Snix. I’d hate for you to be uncomfortable.”

As Barry spun on his heel, Santana caught his eye and winked. He determinedly walked away, hoping Iris followed. Santana’s jeering voice hammered into his head, “See you around! And watch your back, meerkat!”

 

* * *

 

Weaving through the rows of cars in the parking lot, Iris scurried to keep up with Barry’s fast pace.

“Would you…,” Iris began, but she realized that Barry was solely focused on dodging the my rear-view mirrors. She gave up and shouted, “Slow. Down!”

He smiled sheepishly at her and slowed to a brisk walk rather than nearly jogging. “Sorry. I forgot you’re shorter than me,” he teased, trying to lighten the mood. Iris could only think about how harsh Barry had been while he talked to the girl in the mall, and, suddenly, his teasing words seemed a lot more biting.

“You need to stop,” she ordered. She ground to a full stop to the relief of her heels and waited for him to notice (which was another full car’s length away from her). When he finally looked her in the eye, she sighed. “Talk to me, Barry. What is going on with you?”

“It’s nothing. I’m fine,” he replied shortly.

“I’m not an idiot! I’ve known you forever, and not once have you acted as rudely as you did to that girl.”

“Santana’s a demon,” he said matter-of-factly.

The lack of hesitance surprised Iris. Barry was never one to judge someone so harshly. “Well, you were, too. Where do you know her from? Is she some sort of secret ex or something?”

Even though Iris was being innocently curious, Barry snorted. “Ha! Not in this lifetime! You know I tell you everything, Iris,” he explained. He looked at her searchingly, and she watched his stoicism crumple in defeat. Groaning, he rubbed his hands over his face. “If you really want to know, I know Santana from high school.” Barry peeked through his fingers to see how Iris reacted.

“I thought you went to an all-boys school,” she wondered.

“That doesn’t mean I didn’t see anyone else. Jeez, it’s not like I lived under a rock or something, Iris,” he laughed. “She went to a rival school.”

Iris’s eyes widened in understanding. “So that was just friendly bantering!”

Barry threw his hands in the air and started walking away. “Whatever. Just you wait, Iris. Santana will be back by the end of the week. This is going to be hell,” he said to himself.

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is crossposted on ff.net under the same username.


End file.
